Business in brief

Citizen Staff Reports

03/15/12

ReFinery, a consignment store that celebrates eclectic taste and caters to women with diverse personal styles, recently relocated to 5402 Lakeside Ave. The store offers like-new, ready-to-wear condition apparel and accessories in sizes ranging from petite to plus that are current, classic and unusual. ReFinery will also offer a sampling of menswear and accessories and decorative items for the home or gifts. The business was established in 2008 and is locally owned. Store hours are Tuesday-Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Merchandise is accepted by appointment Tuesday-Friday. An open house will be held Saturday, March 31 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For details, call 266-8424 or visit http://www.refineryinc.com .

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Certified Personal Trainer Donald Tate recently opened Tate Fitness Studio at 3850 Gaskins Rd., Suite 200. The facility specializes in overall wellness for diverse populations, including athletes, older adults and post-rehab patients. Tate has more than 10 years of experience with helping people set and achieve fitness goals, including weight management, strength training and injury prevention. Personal, group and couples training are available for all fitness levels from beginner to advanced. For more information, call 270-7878 or visit http://www.tatefit.com .

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Rawls McNelis + Mitchell, a 16 year-old law firm specializing in complex medical cases, recently leased 6,000 square feet at 211 Rockett’s Way in Rockett’s Landing. The 14-lawyer firm will occupy the first two floors of the building that is currently home to the Rockett’s Landing sales center, which will now relocate to the adjacent Cedar Works building. The firm expects to move in by the end of August.

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UR Downtown, the University of Richmond’s downtown Richmond location at 626 E. Broad St., is serving as a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site Tuesdays and Thursdays through April 12 and Saturdays March 17 and April 7. Tax preparation assistance is available from 3:45 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and from 10:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturdays. For the tenth year, MetroCASH is coordinating free tax-preparation services at 14 sites throughout the city as part of the IRS-sponsored VITA program. Individuals and families who earned less than $50,000 in 2011 may receive assistance. Anyone who earned less than $31,000 is eligible to use the online program, Turbo Tax Freedom Edition, with guidance from a trained volunteer on a walk-in basis. Others should email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or call 955-4018 to schedule an appointment. Visit http://downtown.richmond.edu/connect/VITA.html for more details.

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The Richmond chapter of the National Association of Professional Women will host “Fundamental Principles for Successful SEO: A Business Woman’s Guide” on Thursday, March 22 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Shackleford’s, 10496 Ridgefield Pkwy. Travis Paull of Follow Media Consulting will present the program on search engine marketing and explain why it’s important to develop a well-written, keyword targeted content for a website that is updated consistently and monitored for rankability. Paull will also explore concepts such as page-rank, visitor behavior, and how Google views human idiosyncrasies and break down the information at a level appropriate for those with little to no experience with SEO. There are no local dues. Purchase of lunch is suggested but not required. To register, visit http://www.facebook.com/groups/napwrichmondchapter .

Sarah Thomas, Southern States Cooperative, Inc. – West Broad Street Service, recently attended a comprehensive three-day training program designed to qualify employees as “Certified FeedMaster Specialists” for Southern States Cooperative, Inc. The rigorous training program is tied to the Southern States’ FeedMaster program and is designed to augment the existing knowledge base of employees involved in advising the co-op’s customers on issues related to feeding various types of animals. The program provides new and updated information and qualifies for continuing education units (CEUs) by the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists (ARPAS), a national organization that certifies animal scientists through examination.

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Carolyn Hall, a Glen Allen lia sophia advisor, recently traveled to the Dominican Republic for an all-expenses-paid "Rock Star Escape" trip for two at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Punta Cana. Each year, the fashion jewelry direct seller selects a top luxury resort as an incentive destination to reward advisors who meet certain sales and recruiting goals.

RAMPS (Ramp Access Made Possible by Students) recently received an $8,000 grant from the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. The award was one of 75 grants totaling more than $600,137 awarded by the Reeve Foundation to nonprofit organizations nationwide that provide more opportunities, access, and daily quality of life for individuals living with paralysis, their families and caregivers.

RAMPS, an organization founded by then-Henrico County high school students to build ramps for local low-income residents who need them, will use the grant to purchase modular wheelchair ramp supplies. These supplies will be used by local high school RAMPS clubs, who provide volunteers to build the ramps. > Read more.

Henrico resident Larry Loving, Jr., will compete with three other locals – Thomas Scribner (Richmond), Roscoe McGhee (Midlothian) and Larry Loving (Richmond) in the Liberty Mutual Insurance Invitational National Finals at TPC Sawgrass, in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., Feb. 26-Mar. 1. The foursome qualified for the national golf tournament by winning the Liberty Mutual Insurance Invitational, held at Whiskey Creek Golf Club in Ijamsville, Md. on June 11. That event supported the RiteCare Center for Childhood Language Disorders.

The Henrico Police Athletic League (PAL) held its Sixth Annual Awards Banquet Feb. 5 at The Cultural Arts Center of Glen Allen, celebrating accomplishments of 2014 and recognizing outstanding contributions to the organization. Henrico County Juvenile Domestic Court Judge Denis Soden served as master of ceremonies and former Harlem Globetrotter Melvin Adams served as keynote speaker.

Among the 2014 honorees were Richmond International Raceway (Significant Supporter), Richmond Strikers Soccer Club (Significant Supporter), Henrico County Schools-Pupil Transportation (Summer Camp Supporter), Bruce Richardson, Jr. (Youth of the Year), Sandra Williams (Volunteer of the Year), Thomas Williams (Employee of the Year), Mikki Pleasants (Board Member of the Year), and Michelle Sheehan (Police Officer of the Year). > Read more.

It was another win for Willow Lawn when Travinia Italian Kitchen and Wine Bar opened there six months ago, nestled in the heart of the re-made shopping center. The contemporary American Italian restaurant boasts 13 locations up and down the East Coast, with the Henrico location opening in August.

In the same week, I hit up Travinia twice, once for lunch and once for a late dinner. At lunchtime on a weekday, I was overwhelmed by the smell of garlic and by the number of working professionals in nice suits on their lunch breaks. When we first walked in, I was concerned our meal would be a little too pricey based on the décor – it’s a really nice place. Luckily, the menu has a variety of options for every budget. > Read more.

There’s a ton of sugar in The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water. Literal sugar, as SpongeBob Squarepants (Tom Kenny) and Patrick (Bill Fagerbakke) inhale their own weight in cotton candy and eat ice cream, one scoop per mouthful.

At one point we burrow into the brain of our boxy yellow hero and discover the inner workings of his brain: googly-eyed cakes and candies that giggle and sing. All of which is extremely appropriate for a film like Sponge Out of Water. Because not only is the movie sweet (the “awwww” kind of sweet), but it’s the equivalent of a 30-candy bar sugar rush, zipping between ideas like a sponge on rocket skates.

The story under all this is really not that complicated. SpongeBob flips burgers at the Krusty Krab. > Read more.

With this last round of snow still fresh on the ground, the best way to start the weekend may be at Southern Season for their weekly wine-tasting program, Fridays Uncorked. Families with cabin fever will enjoy the Richmond Kids Expo, taking place tomorrow at the Richmond Raceway Complex. Some date night options include the Rock & Roll Jubilee at The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, HATTheatre’s production of “The Whale” and National Theatre Live’s “Treasure Island” at the University of Richmond. For all our top picks this weekend, click here! > Read more.